C-2: REGISTRATION
Principles Related to the Registration Process
1. Registration System
One registration system registers all students at all locations for credit courses offered through the resident instruction and continuing education delivery systems. Non-credit courses and courses offered through the World Campus follow different registration procedures.
The campus Registrar is responsible for providing semester-by-semester registration instructions to students, advisers, faculty, and staff. Registration instructions are published no later than the publication of the initial Schedule of Courses.
The registration process is continuous in nature. Each student is assigned a "first date to register. " Starting with this first date, the student may initially register and subsequently adjust the registration as appropriate and necessary. The fundamental goal of this process is to finalize course registrations before the first day of the semester.
Students may register for courses using the following options:
- Using the eLion system
- In-person registration at the campus Registrar's office, academic department offices, advising center, or continuing education office.
Students begin the registration process by meeting with their academic adviser and scheduling courses. Registration is completed when the student has paid the appropriate tuition and fees.
Students who have registered for courses receive a statement of tuition and fees from the Bursar's office. This statement includes the amount due as well as possible credits resulting from applicable scholarships, loans, grants, and other forms of financial assistance. In some cases, because of possible financial credits, a student may not be required to make payment to the University. In other cases, a student may be due a refund from the University. In all cases, regardless of amount due, student action is required to complete the registration process.
Failure to complete the registration process by payment of tuition and fees may result in any or all of the following actions:
- The University will not provide grades for courses attended.
- Once classes begin, students cannot add courses for the current semester if their tuition and fees have not been paid.
- Students are ineligible to register for future semesters.
- The student's Penn State Access Account is suspended.
- Students receiving student loans may enter repayment status with their lenders.
- Students receiving student aid may have some of their aid sources cancelled.
- Students residing in University housing will need to vacate housing.
- Students receiving Federal Work-Study awards cannot be hired.
- International students may be out of compliance with SEVIS.
Campus Registrars are responsible for contacting students who have failed to complete the registration process. If a student is earnestly seeking to finalize payment, campus Registrars may allow the student to remain in an incomplete registration status. The campus Registrar has the authority to cancel the incomplete registration of any student.
3. Registration Holds
Authorized University offices may place a hold on a student's record that will prevent registration. Because of the seriousness of this action, the office placing the hold is required to notify the student. Holds are placed because of:
- Academic issues--placed and removed by college deans' offices;
- Financial issues--placed and removed by offices such as Parking, Library, Bursar;
- Disciplinary issues--placed and removed by Student Affairs;
- Health issues--placed and removed by the Health Center;
- Administrative issues--placed and removed by the University Registrar.
4. Credit Limitations
Students are not permitted to register for more than 19 credits prior to the first day of the semester. After consultation with their academic adviser, students may register for more than 19 credits during the first ten calendar days of the semester.
5. Registration Calendar
The campus Registrar is responsible for developing a registration calendar for each semester. Consultation should occur among those campus Registrars at campuses where students typically enroll at multiple locations.
The registration calendar is prioritized according to the following scheme:
6. Late Registration
The registration process is to be completed before the first day of the semester. Late registration is defined as a first-time course registration on or after the first day of the semester. The student pays a fee for the privilege of registering late. Students registering late receive a bill from the Bursar's office which displays the date when payment is expected to avoid late payment fees. A student's registration is considered incomplete until the tuition and fees are paid. Students in an incomplete registration status may not add courses, but are permitted to drop courses.
7. Registration Adjustments--Before the First Day of the Semester
After the initial registration, students may adjust their course registration as appropriate and necessary using any of the methods available for registration.
8. Registration Adjustments--First Ten Days of the Semester
Once the semester begins, students must have completed the registration process in order to add courses. Students with an incomplete registration are not permitted to add courses. Regardless of registration status, students are permitted to drop courses. The student may make these changes using any of the methods available for registration.
A proportionate length of time is provided for summer session courses.
9. Registration Adjustments--After the Tenth Day of the Semester
Adding a course after the tenth day of the semester is a Late Add and requires approval of the course instructor. Students requesting a Late Add should be carefully advised and cautioned regarding missed work. Late Adds must be processed in person at the campus Registrar's office, academic department offices, advising centers, or continuing education office. A $6.00 processing fee is charged for a Late Add.
Dropping a course after the tenth day of the semester and through the end of the twelfth week of the semester is a Late Drop. For courses offered for less than a full semester, the late drop period ends after 80% of the course has been completed. Students requesting a Late Drop should be carefully advised and cautioned regarding the potential impact of delaying normal progress towards graduation, possible loss of some forms of student aid, and likely ineligibility of coverage on parental insurance policies. Late Drops must be processed in person at the campus Registrar's office, academic department offices, advising centers, or continuing education office, or using the eLion system. A $6.00 processing fee is charged for a Late Drop.
Students who have not completed the registration process by payment of tuition and fees are not permitted to Late Add nor Late Drop courses.
The time periods for Late Add and Late Drop are pro rated for courses offered for other than a fifteen-week semester calendar.
All Late Drops are subject to the credit limitations established by University Faculty Senate policy. If a provisional or nondegree student becomes a degree candidate, the Late Drop credits used while in provisional or nondegree status are carried forward to the degree program status. If a baccalaureate or associate degree candidate becomes a nondegree student, the Late Drop credits used while in degree candidacy count in the total Late Drop credits available to the nondegree student.
10. Limitation of Retroactive Registration
After the last class day of the semester, registration for that semester is closed. After this date, requests to complete a previously initiated registration are subject to administrative review and may be denied. Retroactive registration is only available for courses for which the student was scheduled during the semester. In other words, this process cannot be used to add courses to the student's schedule after the semester ends.
Requests for retroactive registration must be initiated by the end of the 9th month following the end of the semester for which retroactive registration is being requested.
If the retroactive registration request is approved:
• Semester tuition and fees will be charged at the current rates effective with the date on which the retroactive registration request was initiated.
• Full payment of tuition and fees is required before the retroactive registration is recorded. Full payment must be made within one month of approval.
• All previously scheduled courses will be recorded. Courses may not be added or dropped from the student's schedule.
• The Registrar's office will contact the course instructor(s) to seek final grades. In the event that a grade for a course cannot be obtained from the instructor, the instructor's department head will provide the grade.
11. Administrative Course Cancellation
The Administrative Course Cancellation procedure is available to correct errors. It is not to be used as an alternative to normal registration procedures.
If a student identifies a course for which registration was not intended, the student must contact the department offering the course. The department staff will initiate an Administrative Course Cancellation form and ask the student to sign the request. The department staff forward the form to the course instructor. If the instructor has no evidence that the student participated in the course and makes this declaration of non-participation by signing the form, the form is returned to the department office, for forwarding to the campus Registrar's office. The campus Registrar will remove the course from the student's academic record. This procedure is available one semester beyond the semester in which the error occurred. After this time, the Faculty Senate must act on the course cancellation request.
12. Multiple Campus Registration
Each student is assigned a home campus at which the student must be registered.
Students who are part of a multi-campus college are expected to first register at their home campus; they may then register at any campus within the college without special permission or restriction.
Students who are not part of a multi-campus college first register for courses offered by their home campus. Permission is required for registration at any other campus. Permission is granted by the college dean or academic department offering the course and processed by the campus Registrar. At least one half of the student's total semester credits must be from courses offered by the home campus.
13. Section Changes
A section change is an administrative change to a student's registration that results in moving a student from one section of a course to another. Section changes may not be initiated directly by the student using eLion. All section changes must be processed by a Penn State staff member using ISIS screens ARURD or ARURG.
Section changes may be processed through the last day of classes. When processing a section change, there is no impact on late drop credits nor are late drop/add fees applicable.